Luna, driven by the fear that she might attack people, ventured through uncharted paths.
No matter how rough the terrain, leaping from tree branch to branch had become second nature to her, so it wasn’t much of a struggle.
However, after several days of resisting her thirst for blood, she began to feel unwell.
She guessed it was because she hadn’t consumed any blood. Though she had been drinking water and eating food, she couldn’t shake off a sense of fatigue. Additionally, she constantly felt a faint craving for blood.
(I might not last much longer.)
Luna feared that either her body or mind might give out.
In the depths of the forest, high in the mountains, in a world devoid of human lights, Luna agonized.
(Maybe it would be better to just drink blood.)
Such thoughts crossed her mind. It would make things so much easier. What harm could come from drinking blood? It wasn’t like she was trying to create more of her kind.
She would only take a little blood. Even Rath was fine with it. There wouldn’t be any problems.
But it wasn’t like there would be someone as kind as Rath, willing to offer their arm.
Anyone she attacked for blood would surely have a look of terror on their face.
Moreover, if she attacked someone, she feared she would lose control. She felt she might never be able to return to being human.
(But I’m a product that was sold. I wasn’t human from the start.)
It shouldn’t matter if she became a vampire now.
It wasn’t like she wanted to become one. It wasn’t her fault. The fault lay with the master who turned her into a vampire.
As the thirst for blood assaulted her, she felt herself gradually losing her humanity.
She just wanted to be at peace. Meeting Logan might yield no answers. Reaching Banukht after such suffering might be in vain.
Why did she have to suffer alone?
It would be easier if she had companions. If she created many followers and established a vampire kingdom, she wouldn’t have to worry alone.
That’s it. She would attack a town or village and increase her followers. With her current power, she wouldn’t lose to humans. She might as well turn every human into a vampire.
Crouching alone in the mountains, hugging her knees, seemed foolish. It wasn’t fair that she alone had to suffer like this. She had no parents. No one would mourn if she became a vampire. No one would be angry.
Luna started walking. Without running, she walked slowly westward, suffering from her thirst for blood.
For some reason, she thought of Molly. Molly, who had sternly educated Luna and the others.
But the day before Luna was sold, Molly had said,
“Do your best. You may be a child who is being sold, but I raised you properly. You are not a pitiable child. Live your life as a human.”
Molly’s eyes, as she spoke while holding Luna’s hands, were unusually gentle.
“But if it becomes too hard, you can always come back.”
Hearing that, Luna had found it strange. “I was sold for a high price, so I should be happy,” she thought. “I’ll never come back here.”
But now, Molly’s words echoed repeatedly in her mind.
If she became a vampire, Molly would surely be sad. She would get angry and hit her on the head with a fist.
Those fist blows hurt, Luna remembered, and a faint smile crossed her lips.
Molly was strict but liked her. Khan, though awkward, needed her. Rath said he loved her.
To stop being human would mean betraying the kindness of the people around her and rendering all her efforts so far meaningless.
(That would be a bit of a waste.)
She never got used to the recurring thirst for blood, the writhing hunger, and the overwhelming desire to attack people.
But Luna kept holding on at the last moment.
Eventually, a thoroughly exhausted Luna finally arrived at Banukht.
It was an enormous ruin, larger than any city she had ever seen, with decaying buildings that dwarfed any structures she knew.
Around Banukht, there was no vegetation for a wide area, making it an extremely harsh and desolate place. She understood why the slaves who destroyed the Asra people abandoned this city.
Khan had mentioned that there was a barrier to keep people away when searching for Logan, but Luna had no idea what kind it was.
There are many types of barriers. For example, Khan’s mansion repelled people by inducing fear and aversion. Other barriers might make a place seem invisible or disrupt one’s sense of direction so that they can’t reach it.
Moreover, the opponent was a great sorcerer. It wouldn’t be easy to find him.
(This is troublesome.)
Luna, completely worn out, didn’t want to think anymore.
So, she considered summoning the undead to search for her.
Even though the place was deserted, it had once been a city, so there must be bones buried around. Now that she was the ruler of the undead, her affinity with necromancy had greatly improved, and she thought she could command dozens of ghouls and skeletons.
(Let’s go with that.)
Luna raised her hand and began chanting a spell to summon the dead lying in the ground.
But,
“Wait, wait! Don’t use necromancy here!”
A sudden voice called out.
Looking over, she saw an old man, who hadn’t been there a moment ago, sitting on a rock a little ahead. He was holding a staff in his right hand.
With strands of blonde mixed in his white hair, shriveled pale skin, and red eyes, he had an eerie appearance.
“Huh? A ghost of the Asra tribe?”
Luna was startled. She had never seen another member of the Asra tribe and thought he might be a spirit.
“No, you fool! Don’t call me a ghost! I’m a great sorcerer!”
The old man’s eyes narrowed in anger as he hobbled over to Luna.
“Huh? A great sorcerer? Mr. Logan?”
This was completely different from the Logan Luna had imagined.
As the mentor of Khan, she thought he would be a boring human who only cared about magic.
The old man in front of her, who called himself a great sorcerer, seemed to be quite the character.
“Yes, that Logan. You were about to use necromancy just now, weren’t you? Stop it! Don’t raise the dead for no reason. From the looks of it, you’re also from the Asra tribe, right? Don’t you have any respect for your ancestors?”
“Not particularly…”
“Ah, young people these days. What did your parents teach you?”
Logan pointed his staff at Luna.
“Huh? I don’t have any parents. When I was little, I was sold into slavery.”
“…I see, that’s unfortunate.”
Logan lowered his staff and turned around to hide his embarrassment.
“Ahem, so what brings you here?”
Logan asked, still facing away from her.
“I’ve become an immortal king and was hoping you could help me find a way to overcome my thirst for blood.”
“An immortal king? Really? Let me see your teeth.”
Logan turned back to Luna, stepping closer with a curious look.
(Isn’t there any other way to confirm it?)
Luna thought, but she bared her teeth as instructed.
“Whoa, you have fangs! Scary! Stay away from me!”
Logan jumped back in alarm, keeping his distance from Luna.
Luna was taken aback. Logan was quite different from Khan in an unexpected way.
“Um, excuse me, but is there any way to overcome the blood thirst?”
Luna called out to the retreating Logan.
“Why not just drink blood? Isn’t that what you do? Oh, but not my blood. It’s poisonous. You’d die.”
Logan’s tone made it hard to tell if he was serious or joking.
“No, it’s just not right as a human…”
“But you’re not a human anymore, are you? You’re an immortal king.”
What a horrible thing to say so bluntly, Luna thought.
“Anyway, I don’t want to drink blood. Isn’t there another way?”
“So, you haven’t been drinking at all?”
“I’ve bitten one human. I’ve been drinking his blood, but nothing since then.”
“Hmm, how long has it been?”
“More than ten days…”
“Then your body must be starting to deteriorate. Here, take this.”
Logan pulled a small vial from his pocket and tossed it to Luna. She caught it easily. The vial contained a green liquid.
“What is this?”
“A potion to restore magic. If you haven’t been drinking blood, you must be out of magic. Drink it. Even if it’s poison, an immortal king won’t die, right?”
Logan’s words were always one too many, Luna thought, but she opened the vial and sniffed it. There was no strange smell, so she drank it.
Immediately, her fatigue vanished, and her craving for blood subsided.
“Amazing! This will cure my thirst for blood! If I drink this every day…”
“Do you think I have that much? That’s a precious magic-restoring potion. It’s more valuable than a human life. If you need to used it daily, biting people would be quicker.”
This little old man seemed to have a disregard for human life, a trait he shared with Khan.
“So, what should I do?”
Luna felt disheartened that the potion, which seemed effective, was so rare.
“Do you know why vampires crave human blood?”
“Because human blood is a source of magic.”
This was something Khan’s notes had mentioned. Human blood acts as a catalyst for magic, allowing vampires to convert it into immense power.
“That’s half the answer. The reason vampires need so much magic is because their bodies constantly consume magic. So, if you reduce your magic consumption and learn to draw magic from everything around you, you won’t need human blood.”
Logan’s explanation made sense, yet it was hard for Luna to grasp.
She understood the constant high magic consumption. Her current body always exerted excessive power, both physically and magically. But how to reduce that was beyond her.
As for “drawing magic from everything,” that just sounded nonsensical to Luna.
“How do I reduce my magic consumption?”
“If you don’t know, it means you lack training. You’re still a novice.”
Logan spat on the ground, as if to provoke her. Luna felt a slight anger but continued to ask questions.
“Then, how do I draw magic from everything?”
“Magic is in everything. Not just humans, but the sun, plants, earth, air, everything. If you can sense it and make it yours, you won’t lack magic. I can do it. I’m invincible.”
Logan puffed out his chest proudly.
“I’ve never heard of such a thing.”
“Relying too much on your five senses is why you don’t understand. Use your mind’s eye.”
“What’s a mind’s eye?”
“No idea. I just made that up.”
The more they talked, the more Luna felt frustrated. But she had no one else to rely on.
“Can you take me as your disciple?”
Despite her doubts, she figured Logan, as Khan’s mentor, might be willing to take on another student.
“Sure.”
Logan agreed easily.
“But there’s one condition.”
TLNOTE : While waiting, I implore you dear readers to read other masterpiece novels that also written by the same author :
- When the Monster Meat I Ate Led Me to the Throne (LN)
- Who killed the Hero?
- The Wicked Princess and 12 Eyes – The Strongest Squires and the Legendary Evil Woman, the Second Time in Her Life
- The Exiled Merchant Saves the World with the Power of Gold (translated by my friend meerkat)
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